10.04.2011

Thank you so much to everyone who came out to the release show this past Saturday in NYC. It was a magical night playing through the entire new album with a full band! A few pictures are below for you to check out. Thank you SO much to everyone who attended, donated to the fund raising campaign, played on the record, played at the release show, hugged me when I was crazed, and fed me whiskey when I was beyond crazed!

If you would like to buy the new album, you may do so at live shows for $12 or on CDBaby for $15 or on iTunes for less than $9.

Today, the official release of the album, I was listed on the Country Music Televisions website along side some famous people, many of whom played on the freshly released The Lost Notebooks of Hank Williams (a compilation album that draws its inspiration from previously-unheard lyrics contained in Hank Williams' notebooks).

A more fleshed out write-up of the album, however, was posted on the Columbus Wired and is copied here below. It's pretty great and I'll share it with you now.

With so many musical artists today relying on gimmicks, image, and artificiality to thrive, it is refreshing to hear a musician as authentic as Annie Crane. Her latest album, Jump With a Child’s Heart, shows that she puts her whole, honest self into her work. The music is personal, relatable and inspiring. Jump tells amazing stories about life using classic American Folk techniques. At the same time, Crane invokes even older Celtic traditions. She has a unique ability to effortlessly mix these deep-rooted music styles with modern topics such as life in the city.

Crane writes music about the struggles and joys of her life, as well as the things that inspire her. Her topics include her marriage, money problems, her home of New York and death. Literary masters, T.S. Elliot and J.D. Salinger also make appearances in Crane’s music. “I hate way too cool for school. Screw ‘em and the vintage they rode in on,” she sings in the track “Salinger said…” This is the same anti-“phony” attitude that Salinger’s Holden Caulfield was famous for inCatcher in the Rye. The song goes on to describe the courage it takes for Crane to be authentic to herself, in a society that expects female artists to play stereotypical roles.

Another track, “Money Only Hates Me,” is one that many will be able to relate to during this economic crisis. According to Crane’s official website, the song is about a time in 2008 when she lost her voice and was unable to perform. In the chorus Crane simply states, “Cause money, money only hates and it leaves me. Money’s not my friend.” This is one of the more simplistic of Crane’s lyrics, but necessarily so. Part of Crane’s songwriting talent is that she writes about the simple things we encounter daily, and complex thoughts and issues that sometimes plague our minds.

Apart from Crane’s amazing songwriting capabilities, her musical talent is incredible on its own. Her voice is absolutely beautiful as she blends the Celtic and folk styles into her own. She can also hold her own on the guitar. She is accompanied by a slide guitar, percussion, a bass, a trumpet, a banjo, and a cello. The accompanying musicians add warmth and depth to and already impressive album.

The release party for Jump With a Child’s Heart takes place in New York on October 1st. After that, you can catch Crane in Columbus on November 12th at Kafe Kerouac.